Indian short film to play in Lahore

Indian short film The School Bag, based in Peshawar in Pakistan, will be screened at the ninth edition of Lahore Children's International Film Festival to be held from November 20-25. The 15-minute fiction film, directed by Dheeraj Jindal, will have six shows in the festival.

Starring Rasika Dugal, it puts the spotlight on a Peshawar-based Farooq who demands a new school bag on his birthday. But his mother, in spite of her love and affection, seems unfazed by the request.

"On the digital platform, we have got thousands of comments from Pakistan appreciating our efforts by touching such a delicate subject. So, it feels good when they acknowledge our work, especially at a time when the relationship between the countries is not very strong," the director says, adding, "I always take India and Pakistan as two separated brothers having some difficult times, but in the end we are a family. Therefore, I am really looking forward to the film to play there and let people talk about it."

The film has won 22 awards, including the Best Short Film Award at the South Asian Film Festival of Montreal.